The Basics
The frame of the Rock Island Armory 1911 A2 is a little wider than a traditional 1911, similar in feel to the other “double stack” frames such as the .38 Super and the Para-Ordnance high capacity versions.  The first time the .22TCM is handled there will be a few noticeable things for those well versed in the 1911.  The first is the light return spring and the second is obvious before even handling it, the much smaller bore than standard chamberings.

The mainspring is heavily stippled and the factory grips are rough enough in texture to ensure a positive grip without being sharp or uncomfortable.  It has a steel frame and slide, weighted and balanced well.  The extended beavertail safety is comfortable and ensures a proper grip height.  The skeletonized trigger had a very short length of pull with a crisp break to drop the lightweight hammer at precisely the right time.  The slide is serrated directly above the grip panels to assist in your grip for ease in charging and the elevation adjustable rear sights retain a low profile for standard carry or duty gear without fear of hanging up like a tall target sight.

Left to right: 90-grain 7.62x25mm FMJ, 40-grain .22TCM HSP, 147-grain 9x19mm JFP.

The extended magazine release combined with the lightly beveled mag-well makes magazine changes fast and easy.  The barrel bushing and guide-rod appear to be standard and the slide release, though standard and not extended in size, is stippled for easy manipulation.  The takedown, maintenance, and assembly is standard as any other traditional 1911 series firearm.

Bring on the Performance
If anything differentiates the Rock Island Armory 1911A2 as tested, it is the chambering in the new .22TCM caliber.  While the most common loading for the 1911 is the very effective yet slow-moving 230-grain .45 ACP, the .22TCM is far on the other end of the ballistic spectrum.  At 40-grains and traveling at 2,200 feet per second (fps) with an 18-round magazine capacity, the experience is quite different than what we are used to.  A single break of the trigger unleashes a loud report with an equally impressive fireball from the muzzle.

While the velocity is similar to what you may expect from a very short-barreled M4 or similar “Black Rifle,” this is being delivered from a compact, concealable and familiar platform seldom associated with such performance. The projectile weight is under the 5.56mm by 15 grains, but still within the small caliber high velocity quotients.

Ammo Specifics
As of this writing the only load commercially available for the .22TCM is a 40-grain soft point.  Ammunition is manufactured by Armscor and both the pistol and ammo is available from the normal chain of firearms distributers.  With the development of smaller, lighter and faster rounds over the last decade this writer can’t help thinking the ammo line will evolve to match special purpose applications at some point.  Later this year we are planning a “head to head” test comparing the .22 LR, .22 Magnum, 5.7x28mm and .22TCM.  We will be testing for muzzle velocity, accuracy, penetration, weight retention, and overall performance.  With the .22TCM and 5.7x28mm having similar weights and muzzle velocities we are looking forward to the outcome of the testing.

The .22TCM is a short, bottle-necked round with an enormous muzzle velocity from a short barrel. What the small 40-grain hollow soft-point lacks in mass is more than compensated for in velocity.

Added Bonus Features
The Rock Island Armory 1911 A2 MM (Mini Magnum) is a “duel use” firearm right out of the box.  With a simple swap of a barrel, the powerful .22TCM is converted to a 9x19mm pistol with a magazine capacity of 16+1 using the same magazine.  With a gentle recoil and easy to obtain NATO round, the 1911 A2 can be a useful tool suited for many situations.

Live Fire
Of the time spent on the range, we are pleased to report zero failures of any kind.  Right out of the box the 1911 A2 functioned perfectly and never failed to feed, fire or extract at any point.  The trigger is tight and crisp with a clean break.  If there is anything that should be noted that sets it apart from standard 1911 pistols it is the large muzzle flash and sharp crack upon firing.  The feeling was generally considered odd for all experienced shooters who fired it for the first time because the different noise combined with the absence of an equal amount of recoil seemed “different” at first.  With no exceptions it was highly regarded and enjoyed after this first initial “oddity” was processed, and all who were asked to test fire to give impartial impressions during the function phase of the testing asked to shoot more.  It is the opinion of this writer that several photos and videos of this pistol will be showing up on the Internet and in printed publications due to the “fire show” during each firing. While this can be a negative in tactical situations, it is being addressed by the manufacturer as well as by Dr. Philip Dater from Gemtech as he works on a suppressor design.

After testing for function and muzzle velocity, a practical accuracy test was conducted.  It was fired by numerous experienced shooters at the same time as other examples including a standard .45 ACP 1911, a .22 LR GSG 1911, and several typical 9x19mm variants so everyone had something familiar and comfortable to base it against.  All pistols were equally as accurate from a standing position at 15 yards.  (When ballistic gel and water recovery data is collected in the next phase of testing, accuracy from a rest will be recorded and published).

The Rock Island Armory 1911 A2 has many features common on high-end 1911 pistols such as a serrated slide, stippled mainspring housing, skeletal trigger and hammer, extended magazine release and low profile, elevation adjustable sights.

Speed = Energy
While testing the .22TCM during our initial outing, there were other firearms and items undergoing similar trials at the Small Arms Research facility.  One group was using a popular binary explosive target with some rifle exercises.  Since we were almost ready to wrap up the day we asked if we could borrow a few targets to complete our day.  When they noticed we were testing a 1911 variant they were hesitant, knowing that it is not typical of any pistol, especially one they thought was a .45ACP, to have the necessary energy to ignite one of these targets.  We were delighted when the two targets we placed in the impact area both ignited completely and it raised eyebrows from onlookers involved in other projects.

Conclusion
The 1911 is a long-time favorite design of this writer so this test project was eagerly accepted.  Since the attraction has typically been the large .45ACP round (or larger in some cases) the small diameter of the projectile it was chambered in left us curious at best.  It was one of the few times there was no preconceived notion of expected performance and everyone was a completely blank slate before testing.  Upon chambering and firing the first round however, it was immediately clear that this was no typical small-bore “practice” handgun like many of the rimfire loadings in full size frames.  This pistol chambered in .22TCM has a place of its own and we look forward to continuing the data harvesting to report back with some solid performance reports.  As for our initial impressions the Rock Island Armory 1911 A2 passed all tests in fit, finish, workmanship, simplicity and function and it is clear the round has the potential to stand on its own.  With a muzzle velocity in the 2,200 fps area, combined with light recoil and a magazine capacity of 17+1 rounds in a very small package, we are certain it will be a very popular package.

Early Swedish Machine Guns
Sweden was not shy in their attempt to modernize their army at the turn of the twentieth century by equipping it with modern machine guns.  The m/95 Maxim, the m/99 Nordenfeldt (Konstruction Bergman-Nordenfeldt) and m/00 Hotchkiss all found a home at one time or another in the Swedish army from 1895 to 1914.  From 1914 the m/14 Schwarzlose was adopted and widely used.  The first 511 Schwarzlose machine guns were imported from Austria but in 1917 Sweden began making them at the Carl Gustafs Stads Gevärsfaktori (GF) in Eskilstuna.  A total of 753 Schwarzloses were built in Sweden between 1917 and 1939.

Enter the System Browning
Sweden had no separate Air Force prior to 1926; instead the Army and Navy each had their own sections of aviation.  The Schwarzlose could not be configured to be synchronized to fire through the arc of the propeller and in the 1920s tests were conducted with the M1919 Colt aircraft Brownings that were deemed successful.  This ultimately led up to Sweden purchasing a total of 185 M1919s from Colt from 1920 to 1930.

Swedish soldiers train with the Kulspruta m/36 mark (ground) on the m/36 Lavett soft mount tripod. Note the use of the 5x25 power optical sight mounted on the left side of the cradle.

It did not take long for Sweden to recognize the value of Browning’s operating system.  The Browning was a simple design, extremely reliable and very cost effective to produce.  In 1930, the director of Carl Gustafs Stads Gevärsfaktori noted that they could produce 50 water-cooled M1917A1-type Brownings for the same price as 30 Schwarzlose machine guns, which were still in production at GF.  Thus, GF and Sweden embarked on manufacturing machine guns based upon the Browning system.  This included the Kulspruta (Ksp) m/22 air-cooled aircraft gun introduced in 1930 and the first water-cooled Browning developed by GF in 1929 as the Ksp m/14-29.  This gun was mounted on the m/14 Schwarzlose tripod.  Thus, the m/14-29 designation identified the m/14 tripod and the m/29 as the designation of the gun.  Between 1930 and 1936, Carl Gustafs Stads Gevärsfaktori produced 274 of the Ksp m/14-29s.

The Kulspruta (Ksp) m/36 mark (ground)
The m/14-29 Browning system water-cooled machine gun was upgraded in 1936 to fire the powerful 8x63mm sk ptr m/32 ammunition.  With this powerful, hard-hitting, long range cartridge, the m/14 Schwarzlose mount was deemed unsuitable for long range indirect fire and a new soft mount Lavett was adopted.  Gunnar Johnsson, Sweden’s foremost small arms designer, developed the soft mount Lavett.  This heavy ground mount had a special cradle buffered by strong springs that guaranteed accuracy by reducing vibration as the gun fired.  In conjunction with an elaborate traverse and elevation mechanisms and a 5×25 power optical sight, the long range effectiveness for the purpose of indirect fire of the m/36 was phenomenal.  Only active Army field units were issued the m/36 machine gun on Lavett soft mounts.  Second line units had their m/36 guns mounted on the m/14 Schwarzlose mount because they were easier and cheaper to produce.

The muzzle booster of the m/36 is adjustable by exposing more or less of the gas escape holes. Adjusting allows a faster or slower rate of fire.

While the m/36 was based upon the operating principles of the Browning M1917A1 water-cooled machine gun, there were differences even though the guns appeared similar.  The m/36 used spade grips rather than the pistol grip arrangement as found on the U.S. M1917A1.  If the m/36 mark (ground) was mounted on the m/14 Schwarzlose tripod or the customary infantry tripod, standard spade grips attached directly to the gun were used.  If the m/36 was mounted on the single or double buffered soft Lavett mounts then the grips were removed and the spring loaded buffer was added to the back plate.  The Spade grips were an integral part of the of the side plates of the cradle.  Additionally, the steam tube and valve arrangement, (patterned after the m/14 Schwarzlose system) was relocated to the bottom rear of the water jacket thus eliminating the long steam tube assembly that ran along the axis of the gun along the top of the water jacket as found on the M1917A1.  On the muzzle of the m/36 there is an adjustable gas port that assisted in recoil that could be used to increase or decrease the rate of fire.

The Kulspruta (Ksp) m/36 lv dbl
An added benefit was the m/32 round had a range of 5.5km (3.4 miles, or nearly 18,000 feet.  Thus, in the anti-aircraft role, it could reach high enough to damage aircraft at significant altitudes.  This being the case, a twin gun arrangement (lv dbl – twin AA) was created for anti-aircraft work.

The twin Swedish Kulspruta m/36 lv dbl on the Sammansattning anti-aircraft tripod.

The twin anti-aircraft m/36 guns were not just a matter of mounting two guns in a special cradle on an anti-aircraft tripod.  The guns were actually different and made as a pair with the left gun fitted for left-hand feed and the right gun fitted for right-hand feed.  The cocking handle of the left-hand gun was on the right side and the cocking handle of the right gun was on the left-hand side.  All sighting and aiming was done from the left gun only.  The right gun had no sights whatsoever, whether anti-aircraft, front post or rear leaf.  Each gun had its own special spring buffer assembly for the right and left guns that were different in that they contained the safety and trigger.  The position of the safety and trigger in relation to each gun was different.

The trigger was a red vertical bar that was placed to the outside of the spring buffer tube of each gun, to be operated by the thumb of the right and left hand.  Thus, each gun was operated independently from each other.  The left or the right could be fired alone or both together depending on target, ammo supply, operability, and operator preference.  The safety was a spring loaded knob mounted on a ring to the inside on the spring buffer tube.  By pulling up the knob and rotating the ring around the outside of the spring buffer tube, a stop was positioned in front of the trigger to prevent trigger depression.  Again, each gun was operated independently.

– – – Part Two of this article appears in SADJ Volume 4, Number 4. – – –

For the past several years SADJ has been following progress of the US Marine Corps’ program to identify and field a suitable alternative to the M249 Squad Automatic Weapon.  While the 5.56mm belt fed SAW is touted as a relatively portable weapon that can pump out a high volume of fire, many of the Leatherneck MOS 0311 grunts who have been humping this twenty-plus pound package since 1985 have been asking for something lighter, simpler and more reliable.  This sentiment has been repeated by many in their chain of command from fire team leaders to flag officers.

Like most any significant change to the status quo, the SAW-replacement process has been difficult as various factions have made their often contentious positions known.  Details of this struggle within the Corps, spanning more than two dozen years, will be provided in Part 2.

Meanwhile, the decision has been made and the Corps is well on its way to issuing more than 4,400 M27 IARs as fast as gunmaker Heckler & Koch can deliver them.  By early 2013, every Squad Automatic Rifleman in Infantry fire teams and Light Armored Recon scout teams will be carrying the new IAR.

But don’t mourn for the M249.  A half dozen SAWs will be retained in each Infantry Rifle Company, available to the commander as tactical situations arise.

21 November 2011, The Crucible training center, Stafford County, Virginia. In Reidsma’s hands, the M27’s approx. 12 rounds per second full auto cyclic rate is no impediment to effective target engagement from prone to standing. In addition to a favorable ratio of 12.7 lb. weight vs. the relatively light recoil of its 5.56mm ammunition, the rifle’s in-line stock, broomstick grip, quick adjusting sling, and forward-mounted bipod combine with the inherent accuracy of the weapon’s 16.5 inch cold hammer forged barrel for remarkable long range performance. (Robert Bruce)

Right to the source
Knowing that SADJ’s readers deserve a close look at the Marines’ new machine rifle, our contacts at U.S. based HK Defense answered the call, generously providing hands-on live fire and detailed information on this history-making addition to the Devil Dog arsenal.

Small Arms Defense Journal interviewed Robert “Robbie” Reidsma, on November 21, 2011, following the exclusive M27 briefing and live fire session he had arranged for us earlier that day at a special operations and law enforcement tactical training center called The Crucible in rural Stafford County near Fredericksburg, Virginia.  Reidsma, a retired USMC Infantry Senior NCO, was hired by HK Defense in 2007.  He was named by HKD as the IAR Program Manager in December 2009.

SADJ:  Your duty position title and responsibilities as they relate to the M27 program?

Reidsma:  I started off as one of the technical guys with Heckler & Koch Defense in our response to the Marine Corps’ Infantry Automatic Rifle solicitation in 2007.  I later became the Deputy Program Manager for HK’s IAR effort, and then Program Manager.  I still have other responsibilities at HKD related to military, government and federal law enforcement sales and programs.

SADJ:  Briefly describe the experience and qualifications you have that are particularly valuable to the M27 program.

Reidsma:  Twenty plus years enlisted in the Marine Corps, the majority on the infantry side of the house.  Sniper and sniper instructor, worked alongside with SYSCOM (Marine Corps Systems Command) with the Scout Sniper Day Scope and Scout Sniper equipment programs.  That’s where some of my acquisition experience comes from.  I retired as Gunnery Sergeant in 2006 and went to work as a contractor for the Department of Defense.  I was only there a short time before I came into HK about four years ago.

HK’s M27 IAR, while sharing many of the characteristics of the M16/M4 family of weapons, differs substantially in ditching the “Stoner system” direct gas tube that operates the bolt carrier. Instead, HK engineers chose a piston driven operating rod along with other mechanical refinements and improvements for greater reliability and durability. (HK Defense graphic)

SADJ:  We understand that you aren’t at liberty to talk to us about the Marine Corps’ information-gathering, evaluation, test, and selection process.  But tell us what HK did in response to the initial solicitation and follow-up stages.  

Reidsma:  In the first place, everything coming out of HK has to meet NATO requirements under NATO AC/225 specifications.  HK ensures that each weapon actually meets that regardless if it’s going to military, law enforcement or civilian customers.  If you buy a commercial handgun from HK it has met that process.  That’s why HK has such a good reputation for the quality because we don’t say, ‘this didn’t meet a certain requirement so now we’re going to sell it on the commercial market.’  All HK products meet the same NATO requirement and we’re ISO 9001 certified on the manufacturing side as well.

We reviewed the government’s requirements and solicitation to determine what HK products would meet the requirements, ensure we can meet the timelines, and support the evolution.  We look at if we need to further test the item or modify and test an existing item, etc.  Then we’ll do an internal testing process.  Whenever possible, depending on the size of the program, we’ll try to mimic as best we can whatever the government is going to do.

So we have our set of results to compare with the potential customer’s test findings; two sets of data that hopefully should come out similar.  They don’t have to be exact, but it should point in the same general directions.  All said and done the testing came out pretty good for HK‘s IAR.

SADJ:  Comment on any significant tradeoffs necessary to meet IAR’s specifications.  Things like piston vs. gas, open bolt vs. closed, cookoff, barrel swap, belt vs. mag, etc.

Over the last several decades, counter-terrorism operations became very important for most ‘civilized world’ law enforcement organizations.  Increased terrorism threats plagued Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union, and in recent years local law enforcement organizations, especially the FSB – Federal Security Service, formulated requirements for some specialized equipment to deal with modern threats.  One type of such threat is a well-armed terrorist, equipped with relatively long-range weapons and wearing body armor or hiding behind some sort of a barrier, such a car body.  To engage such threats at stand-off ranges without causing unnecessary alert, in around 2002, FSB requested development of a silenced sniper rifle, with effective range of up to 600 meters.  Existing silenced weapons, such as VSS or VSK-94 sniper rifles, which fire 9×39 subsonic ammo, are not up to the task, as their effective range is limited to 300-400 meters maximum against unprotected targets and is only about 200 meters or less against targets wearing body armor.  Their accuracy at extended ranges also is not entirely sufficient.

The development program, codenamed “Vychlop” (exhaust) was handed over to the design team at the State-owned Central Design and Development bureau of Hunting and Sporting arms (TSKIB SOO), located in the city of Tula.  The team started its work with development of a new subsonic sniper round, provisionally titled as STs-130.  It is built upon a .338 Lapua Magnum case, shortened to 54 mm (2.125-inches) and necked out to 12.7mm (0.5-inch).  Three types of projectiles were developed for this round – PT, PT2 and VPS.  The first two are standard jacketed ball and solid brass bullets respectively, intended for sniping and the latter is a composite AP bullet with hardened steel / tungsten core exposed at the nose.  Muzzle velocity with all bullets is about 295 m/s (970 fps).  Bullet weight is about 48 grams (740 grains) for the least expensive solid brass PT2 bullet, 59 grams (910 grains) for jacketed PT bullet (with typical Russian steel / lead core and gilding metal jacket) and 76 grams (1,173 grains) for the VPS armor-piercing bullet.

VKS rifle, less scope and silencer, is quite compact and well balanced and could be a formidable CQB weapon.

With ammo at hand, the design team developed a new weapon, which was first displayed to the Russian public in 2005.  Known officially as VKS – “Vintovka Krupnokalibernaya Specialnaya” – special large caliber rifle, it was originally built in very small numbers and issued to elite anti-terrorism units of Russian FSB.  As the time progressed, the VKS and its ammo apparently proved itself well enough to warrant more extensive acquisition and issue to regional SWAT-type law enforcement teams across Russia, such as OMSN, SOBR and OMON.

The VKS rifle is a manually operated, bolt action rifle of bullpup layout.  The receiver is made from stamped steel with a polymer stock / housing.  The straight-pull bolt action employs a four-lug rotary bolt, which locks into the barrel extension.  The charging handle can be installed by the user on either side of the rifle, according to his preference.  Feed is from a detachable box magazine, made of plastic, with 5-round capacity.  A manual safety is located on the left side of the stock, behind the magazine.  Obviously, this is not the best position for a safety switch, but Russian users are used to poor ergonomics optimized by and for production engineers rather than end user shooters.  The rifle is provided with a detachable, screw-on silencer of impressive size and rather conventional design, made of steel.  The front part of the silencer body contains a multi-baffle assembly, while its rear part is filled with a spool of fine steel mesh.  Apparently, the rifle can be safely fired with the silencer removed, although this is not listed in the manual.

Disassembled STs-130 rounds with PT2 solid brass bullet on the left and jacketed ball PT bullet on the right.

To provide necessary stability when firing, the rifle is equipped with an integral folding bipod, which can be folded up rearward to be stored in the recess made at the bottom of the stock, in front of the trigger guard. The lever at the front of the trigger guard is the bipod lock / release.

Sighting equipment includes an integral Picatinny rail on top of the receiver and a set of back-up iron sights on folding bases.  Unlike most Russian firearms, VKS has an aperture-type rear sight, adjustable through a micrometer screw and with two range scales on either side, for ball and AP rounds (which, due to different projectile weight, have noticeably different ballistics).  The rifle is usually supplied to users with two sights – daytime variable-power 4-12x telescope of local manufacture or image-intensifying night sight with 6x magnification (also of Russian manufacture), with Gen 2+ or Gen 3 sensor, depending on particular departments’ funding.  Other standard accessories include spare magazines, soft carrying bag, cleaning kit and manual.  Ammunition is supplied in plastic boxes each containing five rounds, with bullet type pressed into the box cover.

VKS rifle field-stripped into major components.

Unfortunately, limited availability and high cost of the STs-130 ammo precluded informal test firing of VKS at the time of this writing, but it appears that in trained hands the VKS can live up to expectations, delivering deadly and accurate sniper fire to ranges of up to 600 meters.  Another interesting aspect of this rifle is that it is rumored to serve as a starting point for ongoing development of several new sniper weapons, including a long-range sniper rifle with similar hand-operated action and bullpup layout, chambered in .300 Lapua Magnum and .338 Lapua Magnum, as well as semiautomatic rifles of similar layout, also chambered for potent .338 Lapua ammunition.  So far, no official info emerged on these weapons, but it appears that TSKIB SOO is making good progress with at least some of these prototypes.

Weight, with empty magazine and silencer, less cope: 6.5 kg (14.3 lbs)
Overall length: 1,125 mm (44.3”) with silencer, 650mm (25.6”) less silencer
Magazine capacity: 5 rounds
Muzzle velocity: 290-295 m/s
Maximum effective range: 600 m

Accuracy at 100 meters, R100:
With PT and PT2 ‘sniper’ ammo – 35mm or less (1.5 MOA or less in five-shot groups)
With VPS ‘enhanced penetration’ ammo – 70mm or less (3 MOA or less)

It must be noted that listed accuracy is ‘factory guaranteed,’ that is, every rifle fresh out of the factory, shoots no worse than listed above. Many rifles can shoot noticeably better but actual accuracy may vary depending on many factors.

To appreciate the complexity of situations where police or military forces charged with peacekeeping duties utilize force, one must conceptualize force not as a static concept but rather as a continuum of responses, ranging from verbal commands, as a minor exertion of force, to deadly force, the maximum amount of force possible to apply.  A use-of-force continuum relies on the concept of multiple categories of increasing officer perceptions of suspect resistance linked to similar groupings of the officer’s response to those perceptions.  As personnel are expected to make split second decisions based on rapidly evolving situations, the incorporation of a use-of-force continuum into departmental policy provides guidance in making force decisions.  Most conflicts inherently contain a fear of escalation.  The use of less-lethal weapon systems in the early stages of a conflict may reduce the risk of escalation, and give reason a chance to work.  Unlike the traditional law enforcement or military capabilities associated with lethal weapon systems, the mission context for the employment of less-lethal capabilities is not always obvious.  Arguably, less-lethal weapon systems have a potentially broader range of application than do lethal systems.

Let’s take note of terminology here in that “less-lethal” is as it implies – not as prone to kill or permanently injure as a traditional rifle, shotgun, or handgun.  Less lethal devices still relies on blunt force trauma of its projectile in gaining compliance or dissuading persons from continuing a course of action that is detrimental to public safety/interest/law.  Less lethal technologies are weapons developed to assist law enforcement, military and corrections personnel when lethal force is not appropriate, justified, or available for backup.  Less lethal technologies may subdue, confuse, delay, restrain, or incapacitate an aggressor in many different conditions such as prison disturbances, hostage rescues, and riots.  Ostensibly, less lethal force will not be as prone to cause injury to bystanders or life-threatening damage to property and environment.

A more useful technique if the FN 303 is pressed into service against the front windshield is to use the indelible paint round to both obstruct driver view and mark vehicle for later follow up.

Less lethal devices are on the lower rungs of the use-of-force continuum with deadly force at the top.  A subset of less lethal technology is non-lethal technology.  Less lethal is distinguished from non-lethal weapons in that the latter refers to devices that cannot cause death no matter how it is used.  Today the search for non-lethal weapons is viewed as an effort to find tools or devices that subdue without harm.  They are not considered weapons in the usual sense nor are they seen as alternatives to deadly force.  The presence of the “CNN effect,” which puts great value on minimizing or eliminating casualties, particularly among non-combatants, suggests that non-lethal weapon interventions should be developed for conventional warfare and law enforcement.  Uses of non-lethal weapons are especially valuable when suspects and/or culprits are found among innocent people who outnumber the bad guys.  In such instances, use of large-scale lethal force is undesirable.  Yet, there is a lack of effective non-lethal weapons even though most agree their development would be beneficial.

The FN 303 less lethal platform is a semiautomatic shoulder fired launcher.  The FN 303 launcher uses compressed air stored in a removable and refillable bottle to launch projectiles stored in a fifteen round disc magazine.  Though initially developed by paintball gun designers, the FN 303 is far from this genre with its potential quickly seized upon for less-than-lethal uses.  FN Herstal brought the design to fruition.  The FN 303 launcher weighs 5 pounds and measures 29 inches.  Its .68-inch diameter barrel measures 10 inches in length.  While it comes with foldable iron sights it has a section of Picatinney rail that red dot optics can be mounted to for greater precision.  The FN 303 can be broken into four major components: 1) upper stock assembly 2) lower stock assembly 3) magazine 4) air reservoir.  A point of interest is that the lower stock assembly can be configured to mount under an M16/M4 style rifle (or any other rifle with Picatinney forend capability) offering flexibility to an entity that chooses this configuration.

The FN 303 can be broken into four major components: 1) upper stock assembly, 2) lower stock assembly, 3) magazine and 4) air reservoir.

The FN 303 launcher is only part of the story as its variety and effectiveness of its projectiles are the true heart of the system.  The FN 303 .68-inch projectiles are fin stabilized and weigh 8.5 grams.  FNH USA currently offers the following projectile types all specifically color coded for easy identification when loaded into disc magazines: indelible paint (yellow) , PAVA powder (orange), clear, washable paint (pink), and inert powder (white).  An interesting note on the PAVA is that it is a synthetic version of OC (oleoresin capsicum) called Capsaicin II that is reportedly two times hotter than OC and has longer shelf life.  The PAVA is very handy for area clearing and denial.  The FN 303 with its multi-round capability can create enough of a PAVA mist to affect general area denial; though its primary goal is to impact specific subjects with PAVA powder released into targets sensory organs.  The FN 303’s semiautomatic firepower is a major plus delivering PAVA loaded projectiles in rapid fashion.  Do not forget even with the PAVA payload the blunt force trauma of being struck with the FN 303 projectile will have its own effect on a subject’s decision making process.  This is one of the keys with the FN 303.  As with most other less lethal devices, blunt trauma is its major attribute and source of effectiveness.  However, the FN 303 also has benefit of secondary effectiveness in terms of various payloads delivered – PAVA, indelible paint, etc.

Any weapon system – even less lethal – must have certain attributes to be effective.  These attributes are accuracy, ammunition effectiveness, ease of maintenance/reliability, capacity/firepower, modularity/adaptability, and simple to use.  The FN 303 has these attributes.  The semiautomatic nature of the FN 303 combined with a 15-round disc magazine provides an important advantage over single shot or manually operated launchers.  Statistics gathered from law enforcement incidents deploying less-lethal devices indicate that often multiple strikes are necessary to gain compliance from a subject.  The FN 303 can send projectiles as quick as the trigger can be stroked.  The design challenge for less-lethal devices has always been to increase effective range while not proving lethal at close range due to increased velocity or mass needed for effective down range performance.  As with any tool, training personnel before deploying in the field is as important as design parameters for effective use.

The world’s first real heavy machine gun appeared during World War I, although big-bore machine guns were by no means a novel feature by then – it was rather that the machine gun has retraced its own first uneasy steps.  The first ever machine guns, multi-barrel hand-cranked contraptions, were all of at least .45-inch caliber, as high as .58 – because those were the standard infantry rifle calibers of the era.  The first automatic machine gun designed by Maxim in 1882, was also chambered in .450.  It was only in the 1890s that the first machine guns were specifically built to fire smokeless ‘miniature’ calibers, being around .30-inch at that time.  The WWI resurrection of these big-bore cartridges came about because of the other two man-made wonders that appeared on the battlefield: the aircraft and the tank.

The first heavy machine guns were built in 1917 by the French, when it seems all of a sudden an idea dawned on them, that their conical-shaped, awkward Mle 1886 Lebel (8mm x 51R) rifle round owes that awkwardness to its direct parent, the Mle 1874 Gras round (11mm x 59R), its case being necked-down in 1886 and shortened to keep the overall length of the new cartridge.  If so, and if a Hotchkiss Mitrailleuse Mle 1914 was chambered for the Lebel, would it be then convertible to shoot the parent round? If so, the 11mm bullet would be an ideal vehicle to carry enough white phosphorus to put a fear of God into any airborne Hun!  The British also experimented with resurrecting the .450 Martini – and for the same reason.  Now that the Hotchkiss Balloon Gun was available, it was hurried into the air on board Voisin IX aircraft as an observer’s gun.  To employ it for single-seat fighters, it lacked on one significant point: firing from an open bolt, it was unfit for synchronization.  And so, in 1918 another Gras-round machine gun was created – this time using a Colt-manufactured Vickers M1915 converted to air use in 11mm, creating the Colt-Vickers M1918 “Balloon gun,” firing from the closed breech and thus eligible for synchronization.  Before the Armistice, the French, U.S. and Belgian air forces of the era roamed the skies in their Spads and Henriots with the 11mm machine guns, earning many kills with these.

But this was just for starters, as both the Hotchkiss and the Vickers 11mm guns were basically rifle-caliber machine guns, just chambered for a dusted-off antique large-bore ammunition.  The real break-through had been made in Germany, where fear of British tanks has spawned a machine gun chambered for the new, truly high-powered round, originally designed for a single-shot anti-tank rifle, the famous Mauser’s T-Gewehr: the 13mm x 92SR. Called TuF MG18, this Tank- und Fliegerabwehrmaschinengewehr Modell 1918 was the first of the new breed: true heavy machine guns, not only in bore diameter, but in power-level as well.  It was a Maxim machine gun, size-wise mid-range between the Grim Reaper (rifle-caliber MG 08) and the Pom-Pom (37mm automatic cannon of the Boer War fame).  Although barely fifty were manufactured before the war ended, this gun made a big splash: hardly any machine gun designing nation was able to resist an idea to build one for themselves in the interwar years.  Of these only two have achieved really lasting success and both are still encountered on battlefields in every corner of the earth: the Browning M2 and the Dushka.

The DShKM M1938/46 HMG of the Afghan National Army (ANA) on firing position in a fire base somewhere in the Hindukush Mountains. Note the round inserted into the cam operating lug to serve as the cocking handle in lieu of the damaged cocking handle on this M1938 Universal Mount.

HMG: The Soviet Style
The history of the DShK started in the hoary ages after the end of the Russian Civil War and the crushing defeat in the 1920 war by the Polish.  On October 27, 1925, the Revvoyensoviet (Military Revolutionary Council) of the RKKA (Rabochye-Krestyanskaya Krasnaya Armya, the Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army) decided to develop new automatic weapons, chambered in calibers between 12 and 20mm.  Having reached that conclusion, the Revvoyensoviet ordered the Artkom GAU (Artillery Committee of the Main Artillery Directorate) to prepare the preliminary tactical and technical specification by May Day, 1927.  These called for a machine gun chambered in the British .5 Vickers (12.7mm x 81SR).  Tula Works designers, Ivan A. Pastukhov and Pavel P. Tretyakov were given the task.  The machine gun was to serve mainly an AA weapon, to counter the low-flying enemy aircraft.  It seems that the painful lesson taught by American ‘mercenary’ pilots (including Lt. Merian C. Cooper, later to became a Hollywood producer of the first King Kong movie) fighting for the Polish was well learnt.  Ground role, like anti-tank duties, was deemed secondary.  The Vickers round promised an opportunity to follow the British success in creating another blown-up Maxim gun.  However, in 1926 the Italian, who also adopted the Vickers ammunition, indicated another path, by designing an entirely new gun, called the Breda-SAFAT, which after arduous labor and troubled childhood has developed handsomely into a very successful aerial HMG.

The Artkom decided to emulate the Italian example rather than go the Vickers path as initially planned.  The gun experts at GAU calculated that the Model 1910 Maxim enlarged to handle the .50-caliber round would weigh a minimum of 60 kg (132 lbs) – and that without a mount.  This was deemed intolerable for a modern weapon and designers were instructed to abandon the Maxim system.  Another problem was the water-jacket.  In a primarily AA weapon, the inertia of the water sloshing in a large pipe surrounding the barrel would get in the way of the gunner’s ability to precisely lead the flying aircraft, except for on a complicated cogwheel-operated mount.  The Artkom specification thus called for air-cooling.

The Tula team faced a difficult challenge – they had precious little experience outside the Maxim platform, and they were working in an internationally-isolated country.  Browsing through the captured materiel they decided the Dreyse M1910 machine gun would be the best way to go, its tilting-lock breech being much simpler than the Maxim or Browning.  Before they realized it was a dead-end, it was already too late to start from scratch.  The resulting weapon was a recoil-operated, closed-bolt firing weapon, with a low rate of fire – but high rate of stoppages.

JS-2 heavy tanks were the first that rated individual anti-aircraft defense by way of the Dushka mounted on a special ring mount with spring equalizers to relieve the weight and enable one-man handling. The relaxed stance of the soldiers on the engine compartment cover suggests that the tank’s loader is fighting mainly his boredom in captured Berlin.

The same specification was also independently taken on by Kovrov-based designer then rising to meteoric fame – Vasiliy A. Dyegtyarov (NB – even though all sources spell his name as Degtarev, because of the 1:1 transliteration from Cyrillic alphabet, this name in Russian is actually pronounced as ‘Dyegtyarov’).  Dyegtyarov was a self-educated ex-metal worker, mentored by the leading Soviet small-arms authority, the ex-Tsarist general, Vladimir G. Fyodorov (another victim of misspelling, he is known in the West as Fedorov), a designer of the world’s first assault gun, the M1916 Avtomat Fyodorova.  His pupil was possessed by his idea of a ‘machine gun system’ – a universal machine gun design, with the same lock-work and operating principle, adaptable to become almost every machine gun ever needed by the military.  In 1927 he was in the midst of revolutionizing the Red Army’s armament by introducing his trio of same action rifle-caliber gas-operated machine guns: the DP for the infantry, the DT for armor and DA for the air force.  Just as the 1917 recoil-operated Browning almost immediately spawned the field, tank and aerial versions, so did Dyegtyarov.  And where Browning’s next step was a scaled-up Fifty – so was Dyegtyarov’s.  He was, however, not bonded by the Artkom’s decision to use the British round, and so he decided to use a completely different, much more powerful cartridge, the 12.7mm x 108, being developed by the Soviet ammunition industry at that time.  This ammunition was initially designed and manufactured in two sibling versions: one rimless, and one rimmed (12.7mm x 108R), the latter adopted for the early version of the ShVAK aerial machine gun, better known in its final form of an automatic cannon, chambered for the 20mm x 99R ShVAK round of the same outside diameter and overall length.  Both of the 12.7s were identical, except for the lower extremity of the cartridge case.

In 1929, four years after the Revvoyensoviet decree, the Red Army still had no heavy machine gun, and after large summer maneuvers the narkom (People’s Commissar, or minister/secretary) of Military and Naval Affairs Kliment Ye.  Voroshilov grew impatient.  He summoned both teams to stress the importance of their task and urged them to hurry-up, reportedly using his trademark ‘military non-uncertain terms.’  As a result of this meeting, Dyegtyarov’s gun was given an official development sanction (it was hitherto developed as an experimental, almost-private venue), and hurriedly introduced into the inventory of the Red Army as the “Dyegtyarova Krupnokalibyerniy” (Dyegtyarov’s Heavy) or DK.  In a nutshell it was a gas-operated, flap-locked open-bolt firing DP LMG on steroids, chambered for the new 12.7mm round.  At first it was even fed from the same style top-attached pannier magazine, but the size and weight of it proved prohibitive, and so in 1931 a new drum magazine was designed for it by Alexander S. Kladov.

This magazine, as well as the whole feeding mechanism, proved to be a soft underbelly of the DK.  The theoretical rate of fire was less than impressive at 360 rpm, and the resulting practical rate of fire was low as well – or worse, as the gun jammed almost constantly.

Published in cooperation with Defence and Security of India (www.defencesecurityindia.com).

Indian Army’s snipers desperately lack adequate training, suitable weaponry and specialized supplementary equipment.  The Army attaches little importance to snipers who can alter not only the course of battles and politics, but even history, by simply executing the one enemy who matters the most.  After the Mumbai terrorist attack the operational usefulness of sniping has gained credence among military, security and law enforcement agencies.  There is a new realization that snipers are force multipliers and that their skillful employment can impose caution, cause attrition and demoralize the enemy.

Sniping is a highly skilled, precision killing business, but one that has been employed desultorily by India’s Army and even more randomly by the country’s paramilitaries and rarely, if at all, by the State police forces.  Even though the Army inducted the 7.62x54mm, Soviet-designed semiautomatic Dragonov SVD sniping rifle into service in the mid-1980s, its employment was at best ‘ad hoc;’ confined largely to picking off low-value targets along the Line of Control in Kashmir in a tit-for-tat competition that rages along the unresolved frontier between the neighboring nuclear rivals.

India’s 3,500-4,000 Army snipers – around 10 per infantry battalion and some from the Rashtriya Rifles, the Army’s dedicated counter-insurgency (COIN) force and far fewer numbers in paramilitary and in a handful of specialist units – remain little better than amateurs compared to their Western and even Chinese counterparts.

They desperately lack adequate training, suitable weaponry and specialized supplementary paraphernalia like accurate imported Match ammunition, hand-held laser range finders, night sights and related hardware essential to accomplish this highly skilled and deathly mission.  In fact, shooters are issued inefficient Ordnance Factory Board produced ammunition, which experts say are ‘wholly inaccurate,’ defeating the very purpose of sniping.

All that is required of the Army’s Non Commissioned Officer snipers is merely good marksmanship, a skill that gets them temporarily tasked with sniping in careers spanning variegated assignments.  Not for them the kudos, fearful glamour or mystique attached to snipers in the U.S., Russian, British, French and other European armies or the espirit de corps of belonging to an elite band of brothers.

Limited Training
Brief four-six weeks training capsules at the Infantry School at Mhow in Madhya Pradesh for two-man sniper teams, the shooter and his interchangeable buddy or ‘spotter’ are at best, elementary and inadequate.  The spotter in foreign armies is an equally skilled marksman but also specializes in target and atmospheric observation, handling location, security and communications and actually directing artillery fire and close air support.

This instruction includes a combination of firing practice and rudimentary attempts to mentally attune the marksman and his partner to patiently await their quarry through aerobic, yoga and breathing exercises to enhance concentration.

Professional snipers abroad train to master the knack of camouflage and deception by learning to stop breathing and reduce their heartbeats to the barest minimum while firing as even the minutest unsynchronized twitch or movement can prove calamitous in obtaining their target.

“There has been no attempt at building up the ethos of sniping in the Indian Army or any of the other security agencies barring select Special Forces (SF) units and to some extent the Special Action Group of the National Security Guard (NSG) and Special Groups of the Special Frontier Force (SFF),” laments retired Lt. Gen. P. C. Katoch, a former SF officer.  Training of infantry snipers remains rudimentary, he adds.

The Army also has no nucleus of sniper instructors, as none have been nurtured since no foreign, friendly military was willing to instruct Indian soldiers in this specialty.  The handful of NSG shooters, who over recent years have undergone sniping instruction abroad in countries like Israel, were too few in number to be able to institutionally amplify this expertise in any meaningful manner.

The first two SF officers who after much negotiation and persuasion attended an intervention course in France in the late 1970s, with the intent of returning home on specialized appointment, were diverted to other assignments that did not require their newly acquired skills, leaving matters unchanged for the next three decades.

A National Security Guard during the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.

The U.S. military, however, as part of its annual Iroquois series of continuing joint training exercises with India, has recently agreed to run a special four-week course for its snipers later this year during their bilateral maneuvers.

But above all, the Indian Army attaches little worth to snipers – an 18th century term derived from the game bird, snipe, that is difficult to hunt as it efficiently uses camouflage to remain undetected – who potentially can alter not only the course of battles and politics, but even history by simply executing the one enemy who matters the most.

Concomitantly, it is also an inarguable maxim that one well aimed sniper round, particularly in an urban, law enforcement environment can end up saving many lives by relieving hijacks, hostage situations and even apocalyptic incidents like the November 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks.

Rare Instance
One rare instance of India’s security forces having effectively employed sniping involved NSG sharpshooters during Operation Black Thunder launched in May 1988 to lift the siege of the Golden Temple in Amritsar by Sikh terrorists.

Crouched atop buildings overlooking the Temple complex, NSG sharpshooters with their favored 7.62X51mm German Heckler& Koch (H&K) locked-roller semi-automatic PSG1A1 sniper rifles, eliminated at least five of the besieging well-armed, trained and committed Sikh separatists successfully bringing the operation to fruition with no casualties to the commandoes.  The PSG1A1s were employed once again during the November 2008 Mumbai terrorist siege relieved by the NSG.

A special badge to boost the snipers’ image, similar to what prevails for designated marksmen in other armies around the world, was introduced in the late 1990s by Army Chief General S. Padmanabhan, but was withdrawn some years ago as it proved unworkable.

Earning the prestigious badge required three confirmed sniper kills.  But senior officers said non-snipers, using assault and other rifles, frequently claimed the designated scalps leading eventually to the insignia being discontinued.  And with its abandonment went whatever fleeting support there had been from Army Headquarters in promoting the tactical efficaciousness of snipers and establishing a dedicated corps of professional marksmen.

Through history, snipers have been grudgingly, almost fearfully, glorified and in recent years their lethal calling has been the focus of several hauntingly successful Hollywood movies like The Deer Hunter in 1978, which ended up as a metaphor for the Vietnam War itself.

Renegade snipers from opposing sides dominated the civil war that wracked the break-up of former Yugoslavia and these shooters, in a sense, emerged as the deadly leitmotif of the bitter ethnic clash in Eastern Europe through the 1990s.  And, closer home in something long forgotten many officers from the hapless expeditionary Indian Peace Keeping Force to Sri Lanka in the late 1980s were assassinated by Tamil Tiger snipers using assault rifles, some of them ironically instructed in firearms use by Indian security agencies.

More recently, however, after the Mumbai terrorist attack the operational usefulness of sniping has incrementally gained credence amongst the military, security and law enforcement agencies as they endlessly battle India’s unrelenting insurgencies and armed separatist movements.

Expanding Terror
The rapidly deteriorating internal security situation, with the proliferation of Naxalite-spawned Red Terror, has triggered a rethink of tactics in this seemingly unending and proliferating guerilla war. The failure of the administration’s inchoate strategy of large-scale paramilitary and police deployment against wily Naxalite cadres has gradually shifted tactical thinking in the direction of developing a surgical killing capacity via snipers.

The Naxal-favored forest terrain of areas like Chattisgarh where their top leadership is reportedly secreted is a conflict zone ideally suited to snipers.  If adequately trained and equipped and judiciously deployed, these sharpshooters can effectively depreciate the Maoist hierarchy, security planners say.

“There is a new realization in the military and other security organizations that snipers are force multipliers and that their skillful employment can impose caution, cause attrition and demoralize the enemy,” a senior infantry officer avers.

The Shooting, Hunting, Outdoor Trade Show (SHOT Show) (www.shotshow.org) is the largest and most comprehensive trade show for all professionals involved with the shooting sports, hunting and law enforcement industries.  It is the world’s premier exposition of combined firearms, ammunition, law enforcement, cutlery, outdoor apparel, optics and related products and services.  The SHOT Show attracts buyers from all 50 states and more than 100 countries.  The SHOT Show is owned and sponsored by the National Shooting Sports Foundation and is produced and managed by Reed Exhibitions.

The largest trade show of its kind in the world and the fifth largest trade show in Las Vegas, a city of trade shows, the 2012 SHOT Show set an overall attendance record of more than 61,000, including new highs for buyers at 36,383 and media at 2,466.  Though show organizers deliberately reduced the size of the show to better accommodate attendees at the Sands Expo and Convention Center, still some 1,600 exhibitors filled booth space covering 630,000 net square feet.

The SHOT show will be held in Las Vegas, again at the Sands Convention Center for 2013 and 2014.

This is the place that most manufacturers choose to introduce their new products for the coming year.  The show was originally designed to let retailers place advanced orders for the coming year.  Now it also allows the media to get an advanced look at the new products so that articles and reviews can be scheduled.  There is also now a media range day that takes place on the day before the show opens to allow writers from all types of publications to get hands-on use of the new weapons, optics, ammunition and related paraphernalia.  The SHOT show is literally the place to be when it comes to seeing the new products from every manufacturer.  This year was no different with hundreds and hundreds of new firearms and accessories.

This year, once again, the tactical, law enforcement and military are grouped into what’s known as the Law Enforcement section of the show and it has again grown exponentially.  For the readers of Small Arms Defense Journal, Small Arms Review and Small Arms of the World (www.smallarmsoftheworld.com) this section covers the “right stuff.”  While the SHOT Show is an avenue to introduce everything in the outdoor recreation field, our publications tend to cover mainly items that are located in this “Law Enforcement” section.  In fact, a lot of manufacturers have started to have booths in both the general firearms area as well as the Law Enforcement section as that area seems to draw the biggest crowds.  So, with that being said, let’s jump right in and see some of the latest and greatest.

The new semi-auto RPD Carbine, from DS Arms (www.dsarms.com) updates this belt-fed rifle into a 21st century squad automatic weapon with collapsible stock and rail forearm.

Firearms that are copies of larger caliber black rifles, in .22 long rifle, have been all the rage the last few years.  This year was no exception with several new models coming to market.  American Tactical Imports (www.americantactical.us) has a new .22 that is a copy of the Sturmgewehr 44 rifle which is designed and produced by German Sport Guns called the GSG StG44.  It is manufactured under license from Schmeisser.  The rifle is a very accurate copy and most people would not be able to tell the difference between it and the real thing at a distance of 10 feet.  The new gun features an all metal receiver as well as a real wooden buttstock that adds heft to the gun and makes it feel like the real thing.  This author had a chance to fire one at the Media Day at the range and its function was absolutely flawless.  This rifle is sure to be a big hit with re-enactors and students of the gun for that time period.  It will be shipped in a very attractive, compartmentalized wooden crate.

Beretta USA (berettausa.com) has done what some might call reverse marketing by introducing a .22 LR version of their new assault rifle before its 5.56mm semi-auto big brother is even released.  They say they will be releasing their new ARX 160 .22 by mid-year 2012 while the semi-auto 5.56 version of their ARX 160 military rifle will not be available until around year end.  There will be both rifle and pistol versions of this innovative gun.

While on the subject of .22’s there are a couple more that are worth mentioning.  Umarex USA (umarexusa.com) has two new .22s that are copies of the Israeli Uzi firearms.  They have a rifle version that incorporates a folding stock and also has a dummy sound suppressor that covers the extended length 16-inch barrel.  The gun is an amazing copy and even has almost the same weight as the original gun.  They also are marketing a pistol version which, of course, has no stock but uses the same magazine as the rifle.  This gun mimics the Uzi pistol that came into this country years back.  The pistol even features a ported barrel much like the one in the original Mini Uzi.  Umarex USA also has a line of H&K licensed airsoft guns that have to be seen to be believed.  Very high quality and exact replicas.

The author fires the new StG 44 in .22 LR from American Tactical Imports (www.americantactical.us) at the Media Day at the range prior to SHOT Show 2012. The gun is a blast and worked perfectly.

Core 15 Rifles/Bluegrass Armory, (core15rifles.com) (bluegrassarmory.com) known for their high quality AR-15 rifles, is introducing their new Moonshiner long range rifles this year.  This new rifle is a bull-pup design, bolt-action that will be available in .308, .300 Winchester Magnum and the powerful .338 Lapua.  The gun’s receiver is made from billet aluminum with a Picatinny optics rail with 30 MOA machined right in.  The new rifle can be quick change, caliber converted in a matter of minutes.  It is magazine fed and features bottom and side rails for accessory attachment.  The Moonshiner accepts a standard AR-15 style pistol grip and has an enlarged trigger guard so that it can be used even with gloved hands in extreme weather conditions.  Its threaded barrel will be available with or without a dual port muzzle brake.  It will also come in black, OD green and desert tan.

Another innovative bolt-action rifle is being introduced by O.F. Mossberg and Sons, Inc., (mossberg.com) long known for their line of shotguns.  These new rifles are designated the MVP (Mossberg Varmint Predator) series.  They are chambered in 5.56 NATO (.223 Rem.) and will feed reliably from AR-15 style magazines.  The MVP series are fitted with Mossberg’s new LBA (Lightening Bolt Action) adjustable trigger.  This high quality trigger is adjustable down to around 2.5 pounds by the shooter, no gunsmith needed.  Hopefully, these new rifles will be available with a threaded barrel to accept sound suppressors in the near future.  Mossberg has also introduced their new Flex Series of shotguns.  These modular guns can have their stocks, forearms and buttpads changed, without tools in seconds.

At this years show H&K (hk-usa.com) released the long awaited big brother of their MR556 rifle, the 7.62 x 51 (.308) caliber MR762A1.  The rifle is a semiautomatic version of H&K’s select-fire HK417.  This gun uses the same H&K proprietary gas piston operating system that is used on all the current H&K rifles.  The MR762 has a cold hammer forged barrel to provide the ultimate in accuracy and long life.  It also features a 6-position collapsible stock, a free-floating quad rail handguard that can be removed without any special tools, by the user, and will return to zero when reinstalled.  This is a plus for rail mounted optics.  It uses a proprietary H&K translucent polymer magazine that will be available in 5-, 10- and 20-round capacities.

Kel-Tec (www.keltecweapons.com) continued to add new models of their KSG Shotgun with a Patrol model and a super short Tactical model shown here.

Colt (colt.com) was there showing off their new multi-caliber LE-901 rifle.  This innovative gun incorporates a lower that can accept either AR-15 type 5.56mm magazines or the MagPul P-Mag in caliber 7.62mm making it able to be switched from caliber to caliber by simply changing complete barreled uppers.  This gun is sure to start a multi-caliber platform revolution among AR manufacturers.

Calico Light Weapons Systems (calicolightweaponssystems.com), originally a petroleum industry instrument manufacturing company, started building firearms in the early 1980s.  They developed a totally new concept in firearms technology with their helical feed magazine.  They built an entire family of guns developed around this new magazine in both semi-auto and select-fire versions.  The first guns were in 9mm but in 1985 they produced the first helical feed .22 LR magazine.  Both the 9mm and the .22 LR magazines were available in both 50 and 100 round capacities.  They went on to produce their guns in .40 Smith and Wesson and recently have come out with 9mm and .22 LR helical feed conversions for the MAC-10 and MAC-11 pistols and submachine guns.  Now they have continued to lead the industry in innovative magazine and firearms design.  This year they will be producing a 12 gauge version of their gun and that also will be fed by a 25-round helical feed magazine.  This will be followed up in the coming years with helical feed guns in both .223 and .308.  Watch these pages for exciting reviews of their products.

Micor Defense, Inc., (micordefense.com) was on hand to announce their new Leader 50 bullpup rifle.  This new rifle is a semiautomatic, gas operated .50 BMG caliber shoulder fired rifle that is just 39 inches long overall.  It places the significant power of the .50 BMG round into a compact package that will ultimately be used by LE, military and civilians alike.  The abbreviated size allows the gun to be fired from positions other than prone and also makes it easier to deploy from, and store in, vehicles.  The Leader 50 feeds from a detachable 10-round magazine and features a chrome lined Mil-Spec barrel with recoil reducing muzzle brake.

For a rifle to be considered versatile it must be able to satisfy multiple roles with equal aplomb.  A viable rifle candidate for this title is the SIG Sauer 716 Patrol chambered in .308Win/7.62x51mm.  The SIG 716 Patrol joins the growing number of AR style platforms chambered in .308Win/7.62x51mm.  .308Win/7.62x51mm potency in terms of ballistics and terminal effect makes it a favorite among U.S. troops and law enforcement personnel in more rural environments.  A quick look at the resurrection of the M14 and recent introduction of several AR-style rifle models joining ranks with the long standing AR-10 all support this observation.

The combining of the AR platform with the increased power represented in the 7.62x51mm cartridge is the key to the SIG 716 versatility.  This is speaking in terms of the SIG 716’s lethality and effective range, while still allowing for multiple rounds sent quickly down range if needed in a close range melee. In training courses experienced involving LE, military and private security contractors the mantra of “one mag one kill” is often repeated in relation to the M16/AR-15.  While the 5.56mm round is often chided in terms of lethality, the .308Win/7.62x51mm does not suffer from this reputation.

The above mentioned AR-10 is gas impingement in operation similar to Stoner’s original design intent.  Of late, the attention seems to be focused on “improving” the AR platform via developing piston-driven ARs in lieu of Stoner’s original gas-impingement design.  Whether or not piston-driven ARs are superior to their gas impingement brethren often generates heated discussion debating the pros and cons of each AR operating method.   The SIG Sauer 716 Patrol follows the short-stroke piston-driven path similar to SIG’s 516 5.56mm AR introduced a couple of years ago.

Firing from the prone position supported by a bipod produced consistent hits out to 300 yards on TacStrike 1/4 scale steel targets.

SIG Sauer will be offering various models of the SIG 716, including a 12-inch barreled SBR (short barrel rifle) version and Precision Marksman model with 20-inch barrel.  The SIG 716 Patrol has a 16-inch hammer forged barrel featuring 1:10 right hand twist with an A2-style flash hider.  It features a “flattop” receiver and offers finish options of either Flat Dark Earth or Olive Drab Green.  The SIG 716 Patrol evaluated herein features lower and upper receivers machined from 7075-T6 aircraft grade aluminum forgings coated with standard black anodized finish.  The chrome-lined hammer forged barrel is chambered in 7.62x51mm NATO with a Nitride finish.  The short-stroke push rod operating system with adjustable gas valve is the heart of the SIG 716 setting it apart from other AR designs.

SIG Sauer’s refinement of the AR design, and even other AR piston designs, consists of a 4-position gas valve that allows a user to adjust gas port settings.  Settings are normal, adverse, and suppressor use still allowing the action to cycle, but without the overpressure associated with suppressors.  The 4th setting totally cuts off gas from the action and maximizes suppressor efficiency by not allowing the action to cycle automatically.  The gas valve is adjustable by hand when clean, but takes a little more torque once several magazines are fired.  A bullet tip, or something similar like an empty case neck, is needed to rotate the gas valve between different settings once the SIG 716 has seen some use.  Normal (#1) is the gas valve straight vertically with adverse (#2) to the right looking at the rifle from the muzzle end.  The suppressor setting (#3) requires the detent to be pushed in with valve turned to the left of the normal (#1) position.  Gas off (#4) setting is further around left of the suppressor (#3) position with gas valve horizontal in orientation.

The SIG 716 Patrol rifle utilizes a self-regulating, short-stroke gas piston operating system, ensuring reliability in the harshest theaters of operation.  SIG literature points to several industry leading technological innovations incorporated in the 716 by seeking to engineer a complete solution to the deficits found in the direct impingement AR family of rifles.  The principal improvement comes from eliminating the venting of hot, carbon-laden gases into the receiver and bolt carrier group.  This reduces the cleaning requirements associated with the direct gas impingement AR.  It also means the bolt carrier group and associated springs are not subjected to the searing heat of the tapped gasses; this being one of the major causes of small parts failure.  The SIG 716’s four-position gas setting further ensures a user can adjust to changing environmental conditions; not to mention better employment of a suppressor if a mission dictates this.  The SIG 716 Patrol has several standard items incorporated in its design for better performance that shows attention to detail.  Ambidextrous magazine release buttons are a nice addition in terms of ergonomics.  This combined with proprietary SIG Sauer M1913 free floated quad rail design that is notched together at the receiver ensures accuracy will not be negatively affected by heat from extensive firing or “torque” applied from vertical forward grips or other accessories.  A further enhancement in this regard is the front sight placement on the gas block versus the free floated rail minimizing sights being impacted by heat or other factors associated with handrail shifting.

The SIG 716 Patrol has several standard items incorporated in its design for better performance. Ambidextrous magazine release buttons are a nice addition in terms of ergonomics as well sling stud points located in three positions on each side of the rifle combined another location on the Magpul buttstock. This combined with proprietary SIG Sauer M1913 free floated quad rail design that is notched together at the receiver ensures accuracy will not be negatively affected by heat from extensive firing or torque applied from vertical forward grips or other accessories.

The free-floated forend rails allow for mission specific configuration with lights, lasers, target designators, and other items.  The 716 Patrol comes standard with folding BUIS open sights, Magpul pistol grip, and Magpul ACS collapsible rear stock and accepts Magpul PMag 20-round magazines.  One is shipped with the rifle.  Several more of the Magpul magazines were acquired for this evaluation.  Magpul’s PMag 20LR magazine is quickly becoming the standard .308Win/7.62x51mm AR magazine with several manufacturers setting up their lowers to utilize the Magpul product.  Quality magazines are a linchpin for a reliably functioning semiautomatic or select-fire weapon.  The 16-inch barrel SIG 716 weighs approximately 9 pounds and measures 39.75 inches with stock fully extended and 36.5 inches with stock collapsed.  The 16-inch barrel maximizes portability and handling while maintaining 7.62x51mm ballistics and terminal performance.  Potential law enforcement and security conscience civilians should consider the 16-inch barrel SIG 716 Patrol for their primary weapon.  This is due its power, accuracy, and multi-mission capability considering likely engagement distances – even in terms of precision shooting.  Concerns related to over penetration could be addressed with ammunition selection; the new Winchester PDX 1 Defender loading for the .308Win. featuring the SplitCore Technology 120gr bullet comes to mind.

In an effort to exploit the SIG 716 Patrol’s versatility, a Leupold Mk 4 2.5-8x was mounted.  A low power setting for quick target acquisition at close range, a turn of the knob to 8x for longer or precision shots as the mission dictates.  The flat-top receiver’s Picatinny rail allows for one of the sturdiest and versatile scope to rifle connections on the market.  Of course, other optics are possible in lieu of the Mark 4 Leupold, such as the Trijicon ACOG or Leupold Mk CQ/T.  Others could choose to go with a red dot optic in a strictly CQB role.  This limits what the SIG 716 Patrol offers in terms of power and effective range.   It is too easy to keep the Leupold Mk 4 in place and mount an offset mount bracket featuring a Leupold Deltapoint or similar pattern red dot offered by other manufacturers.  This allows a quick rotation of the rifle in the shoulder pocket a few degrees accessing the red dot optic with minimal effort or disturbance of handling.  Another option would be a quick release mount to remove the Leupold Mk 4 and deploy the excellent BUIS open sights if forced to move indoors before resorting back to mounting the magnified optic of choice.